good morning, everyone. i'm john berman. >> i'm brooke baldwin. soledad is off today. the starting point today, the negotiator. the president sending timothy geithner to capitol hill in hopes of getting the fiscal cliff deal done before everyone's taxes go up. >> consolation lunch? president obama visits mitt romney to the white house today and everyone is buzzing about it. could obama offer him a job? >> congratulations to someone. you just won the gdp of a small nation. not just one but two winning tickets in last night's record powerball drawing. we'll tell you where. >> and if they will be my best friend soon. we have a packed show. john ba, rasso, adam shif, rick warren, tom cole, connie and

mary bono mack and steven holcomb. >> we have so many people coming up. it is thursday, november 2. "starting point" begins right now. good morning, everyone. our starting point this morning, developments happening now in cairo. the u.s. embassy there is closed. no one is being allowed in or out as we speak. >> embassy officials say protesters are blocking the entrance and clashes are happening near nearby. reza sayah is nearby for us. what's happening? >> reporter: there is no indication protesters are targeting the u.s. em wibassy b it was closed as a precaution. these are protesters who clashed

with police. these are the trouble-making elements, the teenagers, young men, the 20-somethings who for the past four days vo thrown red sox, debris, molotov cocktails at police. police responded by firing teargas, stun grenades. some police officers have been throwing rocks as well. some of the clashes have been inching toward the assembly which is a couple of blocks from tahrir square. four hours ago the embassy shut its doors saying no one would come in or leave until further notice. more demonstrations scheduled in the days ahead in tahrir square. the embassy announcing that services for american citizens in cairo will be cancelled until further notice. >> this is all over president morsy's power grab. what about a potential

constitution here? >> reporter: another important day today. the constitutional assembly in egypt at h hour is drafting egypt's all important new constitution. this is going to be the corner stone of egypt's democratic transition and one of the reasons why president morsy and the muslim brotherhood have been locking horns with opposition factions. this was a hundred member panel assigned to draft this constitution. there's been conflict. it is dominated by iz mists. liberal memberquit. some sued to disband the panel and start again. you will recall one of mr. morsy's ke crees said no one will disband this constitutional assembly. not even the judiciary. they believe it needs to be drafted to get it going. that's why opposition is upset. look for more conflict later today. >> thank you. the other big news, in

washington the white house tryinging to kick start fiscal cliff talks. just 33 days. congress breaks for the holidays in 15 days. >> treasury secretary tim geithner is going to try to get the talks moving today. he'll meet with congressional leaders on capitol hill. let's go to dan lothian live in washington for us. dan, tell us should americans be hopeful something will be done in 15 days? that's before congress goes on vacation. >> let's remind a little bit. it was a week ago when president obama met with congressional leaders before he went overseas. there was a sense of optimism that they could get something done. now it appear it is two sides are still very far apart. so that's why you see the president pushing this tax extension for middle class americans. the president believing this is

not necessarily the answer, the comprehensive answer. it's part of the solution. he's been meeting with small business owners at the white house. with big-time ceos as well. yesterday had middle class americans who expressed how they would be impacted by taxes going up to the tune of $2200 if the middle class tax extension is not done for them. the president believing that upper income americans need to pay more. republicans pushing back on that. none theless the president sounded optimistic. >> a clear majority of americans, not just democrats, but also a lot of republicans and a lot of independents agreed we should have a balanced approach to deficit reduction that doesn't hurt the economy and doesn't hurt middle class families. if both parties agree we should not raise taxes on middle class families let's begin our work with where we agree.

>> americans are concerned. but divided over the best solution to avoid the fiscal cliff. take a look at an abc news washington post poll that shows 60% of americans support upper income americans having their taxes raised. 37% oppose it. on issue of reducing deductions, 44% support that. 49% oppose it. much like lawmakers they realize there is a big problem that needs to be fixed but divided on how to fix it. >> in addition to the goings on in the capitol there is a big lunch at the white house today. governor romney coming by for a bite to eat. a lot of speculation about what might be discussed at the meal and the possibility of maybe future job? >> jay carney pushed back on that yesterday. the president said there was no suggestion here that he had a special assignment for him. the president invited mitt romney to come to the white house because he wanted to talk about moving the country

forward. the president pointed out that out there on the campaign trail mitt romney had good ideas. he wanted to talk to him about that. not necessarily partisan ideas but ideas like job creation for the middle class. the president pointed to mitt romney and how he helped turn the olympics around and pointed out perhaps this could help in the government to streamline agencies, make it more user friendly. it will be a different tone from the campaign trail, talking about moving the country forward. at this point, no suggestion that the president plans to hand him any kind of job offer. >> it is a private lunch. no cameras inside. we'll never know what goes on in there. dan, thank you so much. >> we are all here today. we didn't win. but two ticket holders defied the ridiculous odds. they will split the $588 million powerball. >> the numbers are 5, 16, 22,

23, 29 and the powerball of 6. >> you sound like you have done it before. >> i have done it way too much. losing every time. another loser. victor blackwell outside of atlanta. the caviar dreams are over fors all of us. >> dashed. >> reporter: yeah. back to hot dogs and canned tuna for us. those two people in arizona and missouri split the $588 million. the cash payout, $385 million. i neem mapleton, georgia. they are in arizona and missouri. i'm here because this gas station was one of the busiest places to buy a ticket. they sold a $116 million winner not long ago. that's why people came here. we know at the peak 130,000 tickets were sold across the 42 powerball states, the virgin islands and d.c. per minute. people went against the

unbelievable odds of 1 in 175 million. this is going to happen more often as part of a strategy by powerball, the huge jackpots. they doubled the cost of a ticket from $1 to $2 and doubled the starting jackpot from $20 million to $40 million. the average winning jackpot goes from $141 million to $250 million. 1 in 175 million puts you somewhere between walking township a random woman in the country and guessing her name correctly and a being killed by a random falling coconucoconut. there is room there for a winner or two. >> watch out for the coconuts. victor blackwell, according to you we'll all have more losses in our future. thanks, victor. >> thanks for starting our morning like that, victor. >> it's a big day at the united nations. as well a big day for palestinians. they are asking members of the

general assembly to approve a resolution to upgrade their status from permanent observer to nonmember state. a vote is scheduled for this afternoon and is expected to pass. >> keep in mind the united states and israel are both opposed to the resolution. let's go to cnn foreign affairs reporter live in washington. good morning. >> good morning, brooke. israel very opposed to the move. the u.s. knows this move went give the palestinians what they want -- a state. this is largely symbolic. will have no effect on sovereignty or borders. hillary clinton met with president abbas and tried to assure him not to go ahead with the move. let's listen to what she told reporters yesterday. sfm know matter what happens it

will not change what i support. the only way to get a lasting solution is to commence direct negotiations and we need an environment conducive to that. we have urged both parties to refrain from actions that might in any way make a return to meaningful negotiations -- >> now, brooke, president abbas promised to return to negotiations after the vote. but with israel so opposed to the move it doesn't seem likely. prime minister benjamin netanyahu slammed the resolution calling it one-sided saying it doesn't take into account israel's security interests and it pushes the peace process back. israel is threatening to withhold a hundred million dollars a month in tax revenues from the palestinians, further restrict movement of plib officials and there is about 500 million in u.s. economic and

security aid at stake. congress withheld aid last year when they joined unesco. that's gone through. this could certainly trigger a cut from aid in washington leaving the palestinians in dire straits. maybe lead to the collapse of the palestinian authority and renewed violence in the region. this strengthen it is happened of hamas who was riding high after the gaza cease-fire last week. >> we'll see what happens with that today. elise, thank you. 12 minutes past the hour. checking other stories. susan rice, still struggling to find support from the other side of the aisle here. she made a second visit to capitol hill claiming her comments in the after math of the benghazi consulate attack were based on intelligence reports. she said there was no intent to mislead anyone. susan collins isn't sold on that. >> i continue to be troubled by

the fact that the u.n. ambassador decided to play what was essentially a political role at the height of the contentious presidential election. >> rice is considered a leading candidate to replace hillary clinton as secretary of state. >> texas is moving to seize a ranch owned by flds, a mormon sect that believes in polygamy. warren jeffs, its leader, is serving a life sentence in texas for sexually assaulting two under aged girls. state officials say dozens of children were molested on the property. while you were sleeping lindsay lohan arrested again. she's in custody now with the new york police department. they took her after some kind of oh fight around 4:00 this morning at a club in new york city. she has been charged with misdemeanor assault with reports saying she reportedly hit a woman. lohan was also arrested in september at another club in new

york for allegedly hitting someone with her car and not stopping. she didn't face charges for that. >> one problem after another. christine romans here with today's big business news. >> good morning. u.s. stock futures were up this morning. world markets up, commodities up after comments made by president obama and house speaker john boehner, both expressing optimism on fiscal cliff negotiations in the washington. in a new report from the congressional budget office it says more than half a trillion has been spent on jobless benefits over the past five years. $520 billion in jobless benefits in five years. also part of the debate, whether to extend the deadline to file for additional unemployment benefits beyond the end of the year. spending on food stamps is rising. nearly 15 million households received food stampses in 2011, up 10% from the year before according to new data from the

census bureau. it shows you the far reach of the government right now in the safety net in supporting american families. all of that at the core of the debate of what's happening with the fiscal cliff. $7 coffee. starbucks thinks you will pay. coffee connoisseurs can pay $7 for a grande cup of costa rica fincapalamara. it's called mucho deneiro. cultivated from a central american bean known as geisha. it is extremely difficult to produce. the same america who spends $7 on lottery tickets you know you won't win. you can drink this. >> would you? >> to be honest, once i would. >> sucker. $7 coffee. you need music or television or something. >> people to dance. >> yeah.

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but i still have a runny nose. [ male announcer ] dayquil doesn't treat that. huh? [ male announcer ] alka-seltzer plus rushes relief to all your worst cold symptoms, plus it relieves your runny nose. [ sighs ] thank you! [ male announcer ] you're welcome. that's the cold truth! so just 33 days until we hit the disastrous combination of tax rate increases and spending cuts now known as the fiscal cliff. >> president obama is sending tim geithner to the hill today to meet with multiple congress ohhal leaders. i want to bring in senator john barrasso, republican from wyoming. senator, good to see you. good morning. >> thanks for having me. >> let's begin with something that's been reported on by the wall street journal. which is something we heard a couple days ago. the fact that the president now appears to be flexible when it

comes to the top 2%. quote, president obama signalled he wouldn'tnsist tax rates on upper income americans rise to clinton era peaks as part of a deficit reduction deal. the white house's flexibility first described by democrat erskine bowles after meetings with mr. obama and others confirmed by administration officials could envision tax rates increase from their current levels but less than clinton era levels. would you agree to a deal, senator? call it in the middle. 37%. >> well, the problem with that is raising those tax rates on those folks really doesn't address the major problem which is the spending that's going on. >> let me stop you there. i understand. forgive me for interrupting you. i know you want to talk about spending. on the top 2% would you agree to a deal in the middle say taxing at 37%? >> i don't think it's a good

idea to raise taxes on anybody at times like this. but it only would fund the government for less than 7 days. it's not a solution. the markets need a credible signal that we are serious at dealing with the issue of our major debt and our problem of spending. taxes is such a very small part of it. unless we deal with medicare and social security which are the two big tidal waves coming at us and now the president's health care law. until we deal with that, there is no way to get our financial house back in order. i agree with the president. we need to focus on jobs, growth and get more people working. that's the way to increase revenue. >> the president talks about spending cuts. perhaps that's where you can see eye to eye with him. let me point to this abc news, washington post poll. the question was about raising taxes on incomes over $250,000 per year. you can see the numbers. 60% support which is in contrast

with what the majority of your party is saying. are americans wrong? >> well, the american people know their mind. they say, let's tax somebody else. if those taxes are going to small businesses creating jobs, we need to bet more people working. the other poll said people believe if they send more in taxes the government will spend it, much of it will be wasted and the dollar figures are so large it's hard to fathom the debt we have. it's $16 trillion. it's an incredible amount. we have added another trillion dollars in just the last year. we need to get spending under control. >> senator, you're talking about the importance to business tax rates. one guy who presumably knows something about business is the goldman sachs ceo. he met with president obama yesterday. then he went to talk with wolf blitzer who asked if he would support the president's plan of

bringing the rates back up on the wealthiest americans. let's listen. >> if that's what it took to make the math work i wouldn't preclude that if the numbers drive that way. >> he says maybe a tax rate increase should be part of a deal. can't it be part of a deal? not the whole deal but part of it? >> i met with a number of the same business leaders that met with the president yesterday. we took a look at the entire picture of the spending cuts, dealing with medicare, social security. dealing with the issue of tax revenue. you need to have all of these things on the table if you're going to get a solution that sends a credible signal to the markets, not just here but around the world that we are seriously dealing with our debt.

unless you focus on the big drivers which are the entitlements with it coming baby boom generation hitting social security and medicare age we can't solve the problems with raising taxes. >> i want to get you on the record. we are talking to congressman cole later this morning. republican oklahoma made news yesterday. hailed as a hero among democrats. maybe not so much as members of the party suggesting to his own caucus to extend the bush era tax cuts for 98%. let's get the deal done and perhaps later negotiate what will happen to the top 2%. speaker boehner threw cold water on that. what's your reaction? >> they are talking about a bill that already passed the senate. i voted against it. i don't think we should raise taxes on anybody at times like these. with unemployment so high, people looking for work -- >> no giving on that point?

>> i don't think we should raise taxes on anybody. >> you and ambassador susan rice was on capitol hill. met with senators. didn't appear to go as well as she hoped. you have been on the record saying you would oppose her nomination as secretary of state. do you still feel that way? >> do i. i believe she disqualified herself as secretary of state by going on five sunday shows and giving bad information to the american people. as secretary of state we need somebody who has sound judgment -- she just parroted information she was given. a secretary of state needs to have sound judgment, ask tough questions, and should not be willing to just read talking points. you need to be thoughtful and ask the tough questions before speaking. she just didn't do that.

>> okay, senator. >> to me, that disqualified her. >> senator john barrasso live on the hill. we appreciate it. thank you. >> ahead on "starting point" can the u.s. close kwunt bay? a new report says yes. is that a dangerous move? >> is criticism of susan rice unfounded? congressman adam schiff says we are losing sight of the whole objective in this investigation. he explains why coming u. up. how you doing today? i'm good thanks. how are you? i'm good. [ gordon ] but for others, it's all they can afford. every day nearly nine million older americans don't have enough to eat. anything else? no, not today. join me, aarp, and aarp foundation in the drive to end hunger by visiting drivetoendhunger.org. a new way to save on your prescriptions. it's the aarp medicarerx saver plus plan

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welcome back. some of the top stories this morning. we are following developments happening now in cairo. the u.s. embassy there is closed. no one is being allowed in or out until further notice. protesters are blocking the entrance and clashes are happening nearby. there is no indication that the embassy is under any threat right now. >> now for a third straight day of violence in iraq at least 32 people killed in a series bombings there this morning. three of the bombs went off in mostly shiite communities and a suicide bomber hit a town in central fallujah. sectarian violence has dropped

since peaking between 2005 and 2007. >> south korea's fourth attempt to put a satellite in orbit was skraubed this morning. the launch of the rocket called off minutes before lift-off because of an electronics problem. they have been trying to develop a civilian space program since 2002. the pakistanedi doctor who helped track down osama bin laden and went to jail has start add hunger strike. he began serving a 33-year sentence in may. he was jail eed for allegedly having links to a banned group. >> a new government report says the detention facility at guantanamo bay can be closed and the 166 detainees could be safely absorbed by u.s. prisons. the government accountability stie study looks at 37 3i7b mates are already in u.s. facilities. it's costing america $114

million a year to operate guantanamo bay. >> the results are in. not just one but two winning powerball ticket holders this morning. one in missouri. another oh in arizona. they will split the record $588 million jackpot. this could be you. 5, 16, 22, 23, 29, and the powerball is 6. >> lucky you. >> let us know. >> the nba is expected to dish out fines and suspensions after a brawl last night in the nets/celtics game. it started when chris humphries fouled kevin garnett. that was mean. enter celtics guard rondo. the small point guard rushes in here. you can see him in the mess. he shoves humphries triggering the brief melee. look at that hard foul. he can't do that to kevin garnett. rondo, humphries and wallace all ejected from the contest. it broke rondo's consecutive

assist game streak. he was approaching the nba record. >> i wonder about everyone behind the melee. >> it was a nasty fight. shouldn't happen. >> when susan rice met with senators this week it didn't go well. hearing lots more questions than answers. if anything her critics are digging in harder against her becoming secretary of state. >> she hasn't been nominated yet. >> keep that in mind. >> adam schiff is a democrat from california and a senior member on the house intelligence committee. we'll get to susan rice. but i want to start with the fiscal cliff. 15 days before christmas break. it's time to go to woncht politico reporting the parameters of a deal here. in the wall street journal it says the president may have flexibility on the issue of the tax rate increase. president barack obama signalled

he wouldn't insist tax rates on upper income americans rise to clinton era peaks as part of the deal. the white house's flexibility first described by erskine bowles after meetings with mr. obama and others confirmed by administration officials could envision tax rates increasing from current levels to less than clinton era levels. so 37, 38%, is that enough for you? >> i would like to see the bush tax cuts for the upper income go away completely. with many people, myself included we don't want to negotiate against ourselves at the moment. there is going to have to be give and take. this will be a compromise. neither party can do it alone. there are pieces of this which i don't like. but those tax rates during the clinton years were pretty prosperous years. i think the american people would be happy to go back to the prosperity we enjoyed then. they weren't a damper on the

economy. i think it fair that we go back to those rates. >> i understand not wanting to negotiate with yourselves but you have to negotiate with somebody. so -- yes or no -- would you settle for something lower than 36.9%? >> i don't want to say what my line would be. we have to make compromises. if the rates do come up whether they have to come up to precisely the way they were during the clinton administration it can be a subject for negotiation. >> for instance let me ask you specifically. would you favor support if you need to lowering the eligibility rate for medicare -- raising it rather. >> oh i don't think we should make changes to medicare. it's not responsible for the deficit and debts. neither is social security. you're right, medicare and social security have long-term fiscal challenges. they need to be dealt with.

i don't agree with connect connecting those to the deficit and debt program not created by those programs. >> i want to switch gears. as a senior member of the house intelligence committee i want to talk about benghazi. let me quote. part of what you said, there should be a laser-like focus on going after those responsible. but in the blur of partisan wrangling over talking points we seem to have lost sight of the vital objective. some on capitol hill and elsewhere seem determined to go after another bright diplomat ambassador susan rice. i want to talk about finding those responsible. the fbi seasonisn't saying much. from what i know we have heard zero about arrests. what can you tell us about these perpetrators? >> well, i can tell you that we still have a lot of work to do. the intelligence community is pursuing all of the leads. there is nothing that i want

more. this is true in the intelligence community to track down those responsible. i think it's been a tremendous distraction, frankly, from that central focus of the mission to go through all of the peripheral fights. we have a lot more work to do. we have good insights. into some of the folks that were present. you have to separate conflicting reports of those taking credit. we are not involved with those who were involved. we have more work to do. >> there is one guy ali ani al-harzi, one name mentioned with regard to this investigation being held in his native tunisia. can you tell us if the fbi has talked to him? >> you know, i can't go into that level of specifics. but i can tell you we are trying to turn over every stone, every leaf to bring these people to justice. if i can make one comment in rebuttal to your prior guest i think it is unfair and unjustified to go after the u.n.

ambassador for not probing the intelligence that was given to her by the cia. after all, let's not forget that the director of the cia himself at the time as well as the director of national intelligence, the top intelligence officials of the nation both believed when she went on the talk shows, they believe it began as a protest. the intelligence community was wrong. i hardly think it's fair to suggest she had better information than the head of the cia. >> for some reason susan rice is having a hard time convincing senators of the point she made. she met with susan colins of maine considered a moderate who said she would have trouble supporting susan rice if she's nominated as secretary of state. to get her through you need five republican votes. if you don't have susan collins, who are you going to get? >> hopefully we would have susan colin ifs the president

nominates the ambassador. senator collins has not said she would oppose the nomination. she said she want wants more information. i agree with the white house. there isn't likely to be a change in the fact here. the talking points were produce bid the bell jens community, amended by the intelligence community. they were flawed. they were relied upon by the ambassador. that's basically it. i have to think this is unfortunately a continuation of the presidential campaign by other means. but the election has taken place. we should let that be. many of the same senators who spoke loudly of president bush's right to appoint the cabinet of his choice to hepburn those positions and not apply a different standard to a democratic president. >> congressman adam schiff from california. thanks for coming in. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> ahead on "starting point" g.q.'s list of the least influential people of the year is out. tops on the list, a wealthy man whose name you're probably all too familiar with.

>> and totally separate here. his purpose driven life has been a best seller for years. now pastor rick warren has an update to the book. he joins us with what's new in the pages coming up.

welcome back. for the second time an international criminal court acquitted the former prime minister of kosovo of warm crimes. the charges stemmed from 1998 when he was an army commander fighting for independence from serbia. >> i love this story. the photo went viral online. showing a true hero. officer lawrence deprimo kneeling down on a cold night in new york last week to put new boots on a homeless man. the officer bought them after noticing the man was barefoot, talked to him for a while. the photo was viewed on facebook more than a million times. the officer keeps the receipt for the boots in his police jacket to remind him other people have it worse than he does. >> moment of kindness. >> not so kind. talk about kicking a guy when he's down. mitt romney was named the least influential person of 2012.

it said nobody was inspired by him or voted for romney enthusiastically. the list is placed under the title "humor". >> ahead on "starting point" he's known as one of america's most well known pastors. his popular best seller is getting an update. rick warren is here to talk about the new "purpose-driven life." if you are one of the millions of men who have used androgel 1%, there's big news. presenting androgel 1.62%.

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welcome back. it's been on the bestseller list for a decade. now "the purpose-driven life" is getting an update. >> rick warren has come out with a new edition with a subtitle asking "what on earth am i here for"? sounds like a good question. good morning. >> good to be with you. >> the book sold 32 million copies, roughly the population of moracco. so why come out with a new version? what's new? >> three things happened. first, the audience has changed. a girl who was 12 years old when the book came out is now 22. she needs to know her purpose. i refocused for people in their 20s and 30s who may have ignored it ten years ago. i redesigned it for that.

secondly, new technology. we have all kinds of social media we didn't have ten years ago. rather than writing another book or making this book longer i added a qr code video introduction to every chapter and additional audio teaching to every i learned a lot of things in the last ten years. when you write a book that now over 60 million readers in america according to the gallup poll, 20% of america read it, i probably received half a million letters. and i still, ten years later, get hundreds of letters a day. >> how many do you actually read? >> not that many. as i read them, the ones i read made me sympathetic to people's hurt. there's a lot of pain out there. >> let me jump in. what i would want to ask you. when you look at these, you site gallup for one poll and gallup numbers showing that americans are becoming less religious from august, saying more americans

who were religious dropped 13 points from 2005 till now. >> yes. >> in fact, more people who are atheist rose, younger people with more diverse group of friends, could be seen as more open. is that a bad thing? >> first place, there's no doubt that our culture is becoming more coarse and there's more rudeness and things like that. the actual number of atheist in america really hasn't changed since the 1950s. they're just more vocal. interesting, when you look at polls you have to ask, what was the question asked? for instance, that question, newsweek came out with an article that said nine months ago, cover article that said the decline and death of christian america. that was on the cover. this month, "newsweek" dies. the church will keep going. >> how do you define your religion? 60% say religious, it kleined.

>> i'm sure that's true. >> does that bother you? >> no because the culture of christianity is dying. true christianity is not. a lot of people particularly in the south you go to business because it's good for your business. they weren't christians in the first place. there was a question or result that came out and said protestants have dropped precipitously in america. of course they have. nobody uses that term anymore. it's like saying the number of pilgrims has drop ped precipitously in america. it's not a term used anymore. >> we almost voted in a mormon president. >> yeah. >> what if america were to vote in an atheist president or muslim president, do you think that's going to happen? >> could be. >> what would happen first? >> significant difference in this election. historically, since jimmy carter, america has voted presidents who claim to be, quote, born again, whether

liberal or conservative. every single president since carter claimed to be, quote, born again. this was the first election since carter where neither candidate, nor president obama nor mitt romney claimed to be a born again christian. there was a choice there that was very different. >> how would you feel if a muslim president were to be elected? >> depends on what his views are on politics. you're not voting for a pastor. you're voting for a president. when i go to a doctor i don't ask the guy are you a christian? i ask him, have you done this surgery before? >> you did the invocation for president obama's inauguration in 2009. any sense to go back here in a few weeks? >> no, i'm sure i won't. many people don't know four years earlier i did an inauguration prayer for president bush at the beginning of his inauguration, but nobody noticed it. >> i want to talk about the coarseness in our culture a little bit. >> yeah. >> tyler clemente at rutgers

university, the student who killed himself, very sad thing. his parents wrote that they left their evangelical church recently because they felt the beliefs on homosexuality estranged them from their son, which meant he could not come to this. jesus is more about reconciliation and love. he spoke more about divorce than homosexuality. you can be divorced and join a church more than you can be gay and join churches. >> very good point. jesus taught, as a christian, i am not allowed to hate anybody. i'm not allowed to do that. in fact, i am commanded by jesus christ to love everyone, to show respect to everyone. there's a difference between acceptance and approval. good accepts me, accepts you unconditionally. he doesn't approve of everything we do. >> don't you think churches are responsible for some of the attitudes towards gays in america, the negative attitudes? >> probably, yeah.

in fact, there are some people who are extremely violent or hateful. and hate is never of god, never. >> pastor rick warren, a pleasure. >> thank you. >> thank you so much. >> ahead this morning on starting point, we're talking to a republican lawmaker pushing for compromise on capitol hill, congressman tom cole, who says stop worrying about the 2%. bound to spark a heated debate at bars, sports radio and this very table. bonds, clemens, names on the baseball hall of fame ballot. should they get in? with olay. regenerist micro-sculpting serum for firmer skin in 5 days. pretty heavy lifting for such a lightweight. [ female announcer ] olay regenerist.

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>> good morning. i'm brooke baldwin. >> and i'm john berman. soledad is off today. >> the negotiator. the president is sending his

negotiator to try to get a deal before the holidays. we're talking to the republican who may hold the key to a deal. mitt romney on his way to the white house to talk with the president. what it could mean for his future, for your future and maybe a compromise in washington. and just two tickets splitting half a billion dollars. powerball winners in missouri and arizona. are you holding the lucky numbers? >> we're not. we're here this morning. maybe you are. also here, can't wait for this guest. america's top bobsledder keeping a huge secret. going blind at the height of his career. the amazing story how he continued to race and win gold. >> that's an amazing story. "starting point" begins right now. we have a great team of dashing young men here with us today. ryan lizza, washington correspondent for the new york

her, richard socarides and will cain. >> are you including yourself in that dashing young men? >> absolutely not. i prefer alluring and mysterious, but go ahead. >> okay. "starting point" here this hour. sorry. sorry, berman. this is cairo. u.s. embassy there, it is closed right now, no one being allowed in or allowed out right now. >> protesters are blocking the entrance and clashes are had happening very close by. reza sayah is joining us now. what's the situation there? >> reporter: there are still clashes taking place in the arteries and streets leading to tahrir square. a couple of these streets are very close to the u.s. embassy. as a precaution earlier today, the u.s. embassy announced its shutting its doors until further notice. we should tell you that these clashes are usually triggered by teenagers, trouble making

element that is continue to throw rocks and debris at police. police responding with tear gas. sometimes police officers throwing rocks themselves. so the violence a little too close for comfort apparently for the u.s. embassy. they say the embassy is not a target. again, just as a precaution, they've shut their doors today. >> reza sayah in cairo today. before i let you go, a lot of talk about mohamed morsi pushing toward a constitution. what's the latest there? >> reporter: yeah. so important developments today. as we speak egypt's constitutional assembly voting on the all-important draft of the new constitution. again, this will be the cornerstone of egypt's democratic transition. it's been one of the reasons why president morsi, muslim brotherhood, have been locking horns with opposition factions. this panel is dominated by islamists, the opposition factions say they're trying to squeeze them out. if this vote takes place in about 15 days there's going to

be a nationwide referendum. people will be voting for this constitution. and if they approve it, all those controversial decrees that gave president morsi those sweeping powers will be immediately anulled, president morsi and the muslim brotherhood hoping it will calm down the factions. we'll see if that happens in the coming days. >> a lot going on. reza sayah in cairo. thanks very much. ins with washington, the w house is trying to kick start the talks. 33 days till the fiscal cliff. but congress takes a break in 15 days. >> tim geithner joins the battle, the top fiscal cliff negotiator will be going to the hill, meeting with top congre congressional leaders today. dan lothian is in washington to

bring us up to speed so far. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. there was a sense of optimism. some lawmakers sounding a little pessimistic. the president still insisting that upper income americans need to pay more. republicans are resisting that. they want to see entitlements on the table. meantime what you see from the president is this pr campaign, if you will, bringing small business owners here to the white house, top ceos. in addition to that, the president brought middle class americans here to the white house yesterday, people who said that they would be impacted, having to pay $2,200 more in taxes if these bush era tax cuts are not extended. the president will hit the road tomorrow, going to pennsylvania, to a plant there, a manufacturing plant, continuing to push that message of tax cut extensions for middle class americans but some pushback from top republicans up on the hill who are saying the president needs to show more leadership, that the president needs to spend more time here negotiating, not out on the

road, campaigning. >> speaking of negotiating, dan lothian, thank you. want to continue the conversation on fiscal cliff. this one republican has really been making news with this -- we'll call it an outside the box idea to avoid at least part of this fiscal cliff. he is suggesting to extend the bush cuts for the 98% of americans right now since at least both sides agree that has to happen and then haggle over the top 2% later. >> the republican in the middle of this all is congressman tom cole from oklahoma. congressman cole, speaker boehner and others have thrown cold water on this idea. let's clear this up right now. you still stand by this notion, pass the tax cuts for the 98% right now, deal with the 2% after the new year but essentially let those da tax breaks for the top 2% expire? >> i do think where we agree on 98%, we should take that off the table so americans don't have to

worry about that. that actually strengthens our position. at the end of the day it's a discussion amongst republicans over tactic, not a division or debate. the president would be well advised if he's serious to actually bring spending cuts and entitlement reform to the table. we haven't heard much of that. that's really what's sparking republican discourse. >> let's listen to what some of your colleagues have said. >> a wonderful friend of mine, great supporter of mine, but raising taxes on the so-called top 2%, half of those taxpayers are small business owners that pay their taxes through their personal income. that's why this is not the right approach. we're willing to put revenue on the table as long as we're not raising rates. >> i think he's wrong. and i think most of the congress thinks he's wrong he is a good

man who has served here a long time but he is also a man who has voted for spending. they are the ones here for 10, 20 years, causing all the problems we're now facing. >> that's kind of stinging criticism there from representative labrador. >> look, i love raul. he is a great guy. he is new here and he doesn't know what he's talking about in terms of my record on spending and taxes. we can have that discussion later. he is a terrific member. >> he doesn't know what he's talking about? >> he doesn't on this case. look, i never would say anything disparaging about him or the speaker who, by the way, i agree with. i think he's do iing a great jo and at the end of the day he will negotiate a tough deal. every time he has done that, i've voted for that and tried to persuade others. i suspect i'll be there again but i haven't seen the deal yet. >> those who maybe disagree with you this in your own party are

saying what about the democrats? senator patty murray gave you a little shout out yesterday morning. here she was. >> i applaud representative cole for that common sense and brave position. i'm hopeful that he can persuade other republicans to do the right thing. >> so being a hero among democrats? >> i've never had so many nice things said about me by people that i don't agree with on anything. i respect senator murray, but she's one out there arguing to go over the fiscal cliff. she thinks that would be a good idea. that's a crazy idea. with all due respect i'm not sure she really wants my idea accepted because she's argued for the opposite position. at the end of the day we need to sit down. the president needs to put real spending cuts and entitlement reform reforms on the table. the speaker has said revenue is on the table. we ought to take americans, most of them, out of this so they don't have to worry about it. over the course of the argument

they'll be on our side of the debate. that's a tactical difference. republicans are very united with the speaker at the end of the day. >> this is will cain. hearing you right now and hearing the clips of the other republicans, there's no difference in the end goal. you want entitlement reform, tax reform and spending control. your idea is curious. let's give the democrats everything they want and then hope they come back in good faith later to negotiate on the things we want. doesn't that seem what you're asking for? >> i would disagree with you 100% on that. we have lots of leverage in this negotiation. nobody wants spending cuts, particularly democrats on t-- americans should never be used as leverage in a negotiation. if they are leverage it's democratic leverage in this case, not republicans. it's the president. it's the democrats that are making the point your taxes are all going to rise in 30 days. i don't see this as quote our

leverage in this discussion. why not just do the right thing? we know at the end of the day neither side wants to raise taxes on the average american. let's just do that now and continue our discussion and debate. but there's plenty of leverage in terms of spending on our side. >> congressman it's ryan lizza. how many of your colleagues do you think actually agree with you on this but just aren't coming forward and saying it publicly? >> some agree. some don't. it's fine. >> put a number on it. >> i'm not going to put a number on t i don't know. >> then name some of them. >> why would i dime out my friends? >> such a great point. >> this is a very serious proposal, which i think deserves a lot of attention. >> another democratic friend you have made here. >> i applaud you for trying to do something serious here. this is -- we're beginning to see that people are going to take a different approach to this and it may be a new day and i applaud you for trying to do

something serious. >> stop applauding. he wants people like me to start applauding. >> why don't you join him? a moment where you can join me. >> guys, let's let the congressman quit while he's ahead. congressman tom cole, great to see you this morning. >> great to see you. >> it's a great point it's one thing what all these women and men are saying in front of the camera and quite another what's being said behind closed doors. >> as will points out from a negotiating standpoint, you don't want to come out and say it publicly but everyone knows the president isn't bending on the upper tax rates. >> okay. we'll continue in a moment. other top stories here this morning, u.n. ambassador susan rice is struggling to find even a sliver of support among her republican critics. she met with senator susan collins, who says she's struggling with rice's remarks in the aftermath of the attack on the american consulate in

benghazi, but president obama stands by rice. >> susan rice is extraordinary. couldn't be prouder of the job she has done. >> cabinet meeting yesterday afternoon. rice is considered a front-runner to replace hillary clinton as secretary of state. >> palestinians are anticipating an important vote this afternoon at the united nations, asking the general assembly to upgrade their status from permanent observer to what's called nonmember state. it is expected to pass. if it does, it becomes an implicit u.n. recognition of palestinian statehood is what some say. israel opposes this decision and says it can only be achieved with direct negotiation with israel. do you think they're at work this morning? >> no. >> no. two very lucky winners of the powerball jackpot. one ticket sold in missouri, the other in arizona. whoever you are, the two of you will be splitting the record

$588 million jackpot. >> some of these have been split four, five ways. two say nice split. >> it could be two large families. we don't know. in case you're wondering this morning, 5, 16, 22, 23, 29 and a powerball of 6. >> let the debate begin. we're talking baseball guys. important stuff to talk about. give me a second here. barry bonds, roger clemens and sammy sosa have been added to the hall of fame ballot in 2016. bonds all-time home run king, clemens, the best righty ever ibs, at least since world war ii, sammy sosa, hit 60 home runs three times, all under suspicion of taking performance-enhancing drugs. so -- >> how do you feel about this? >> should they get in or not? >> no. >> don't know. >> i love the honesty. >> should they get in or not? >> of course they shouldn't. >> i don't know the evidence on each one of them. do we know for a fact that they

have -- suspicion. >> it's suspicion. clemens was cleared in court of steroid charges. barry bonds convicted of one charge. others thrown out in court. sammy sosa never convicted or charge but suspended for other things while he was playing. the character is list ed as a requirement or as a -- something you can be judged on by the baseball writers and if character -- >> pete rose is different. it's explicit. he is banned from baseball. there was actually action taken, he was banned from baseball. he is not eligible. these three men are still eligible. it's a different thing. >> they just cheated. >> minor detail. >> i happen to agree with the gentleman, my vote would be no. there's a big meeting today twoen presint obama and mitt romney. they'll be talking about the baseball hall of fame no doubt. also, does romney have a future in the obama administration? >> the answer is yes. >> oh, please. >> hang on there. and the incredible story of

an olympic gold bobsledder of an incredible secret. he was going blind. hear the story firsthand when stephen holcomb joins us. i was saving big on car insurance. with snapshot, i knew what i could save before i switched to progressive. the better i drive, the more i save. i wish our company had something this cool. you're not filming this, are you? aw! camera shy. snapshot from progressive. test-drive snapshot before you switch. visit progressive.com today.

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in the prime of his career, he was going blind. >> he initially kept this degeneral active eye disease a secret. when he finally told his coach, a revolutionary procedure restored his vision, allowing him to race again. he went on to become the first bobsledder since 1948 to win the gold medal. he has a new memoir called "but now i see." nice to meet you. >> thank you. thank you for having me. >> how in the world did you keep this a secret? >> it wasn't easy. definitely for many years, i kind of -- it wasn't something that came on overnight. it slowly gets worse and worse. the disease is called keraconis. it slowly comes on over time. having that slowly go away, you find ways to get away with things. the team would go out to the sports bar to watch the next game on tv but i couldn't see the tv. i would be like, ah -- >> skip it? >> yeah. i found a way to pull away and people left me -- >> but you would race down this

mountain at 100 miles an hour. how did you navigate that with your eyes going? >> looking back now it's a little risky, but -- >> what couldn't you see? >> imagine opening your eyes under water. you can tell where people are, but you can't really see who they are. you just know there's a person there. you learn how to pick things up with their voices. okay, i know who that is by them speaking. >> could you drive a car? did you have a license? >> i did. >> it was not safe to drive a car at the time? >> realistically, it's not hard to get a driver's license. >> when you're racing it's amazing what you can determine with your owner other senses. >> everything else is amplified. i learned to drive by feel as opposed to visual cues. the best way to drive. >> so you can smile about it now but you actually tried to take your own life, it was getting so difficult. let me read quickly. only path remained open. in one quick motion i threw the pills in my mouth. the glass seemed superfulous as

well so i grabbed the bottle of jack daniels and tip it back pulling a long swig to wash the little helpers down. i was intoxicated. >> i wasn't hung over the next day, just kind of -- i didn't know where i was. you know, i expected to not -- never to wake up again. >> how did that change you? >> i figured it was a second opportunity, a second chance. >> the surgery was, what, 2008? >> 2008. >> since then you've had good things happen like a gold medal. >> hold that up. >> it's hard to really get over that. >> that's awesome. >> looking back. but, yeah, it was a second chance. i knew i had to optimize that chance. i didn't want to leave anything behind. >> steven holcomb, are you still out there racing? >> i am. >> what's next? >> 2014 is the next olympics. we have just won three of our four races anyway row. i'm looking to defend this gold medal and get another one and

hopefully a second one. >> we knew him. we talked to him. >> we're glad you're here. glad you're with us. glad for all your success. from battles on the campaign trail to a lunch date. president obama and mitt romney will be meeting today. what do the two have to talk about? meet the 5-passenger ford c-max hybrid. when you're carrying a lot of weight, c-max has a nice little trait, you see, c-max helps you load your freight, with its foot-activated lift gate.

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all right. welcome back, everyone. a really interesting lunch date happening at the white house today. mitt romney coming over for lunch with president obama. and, of course, obviously a lot of rumors about a possible position for romney maybe in the obama administration. you remember barack obama promised in his victory speech to reach out to mitt romney. so, guys, what's going to go on at this lunch?

job offers? >> i do think president obama would be smart to find something for governor romney to do. because i think he has a lot to offer the country. he had some good ideas. as part of this country coming together after the election, if he could find something for governor romney to do, it would be good for the country. >> like what? >> and smart politics. >> like what? >> commerce secretary. i think that's something he is very well suited to do. i think anything that governor romney would be interested in doing, president obama should let him do it so long as it's not in charge of reducing taxes in the wealthy. >> why would he want to take it? >> service. he doesn't need to work. he has a lot of money. as long as he gets to spend time with his grandkids, whom he adores, he needs something to do and i think he would want to serve. >> the whole point of the romney campaign was that everything that obama had done needed to be overturned, whether it was on taxes. >> i think that's why so many people are laughing at this. >> stimulus, health care, dodd frank. >> i'm with you, ryan. >> what role could mitt romney possibly play?

>> i'm with you, ryan. >> it's good to see the two sides come together and have a lunch but frankly the ideology is too far apart. >> i'm with you. you don't have to laugh at it, go as far as richard has gone. to show this was an election, this was politics. look, we can sit down together. that's it. >> after this lunch these two guys will not talk or meet unless it's been accident. i guarantee it. look how long it took obama to patch things up with bill clint ep. >> look at bill clinton and w. >> bill clinton is very different. >> gentlemen, thank you. ahead on "starting point" they both lost their bid for re-election. connie mack and mary bono mack. we'll talk to the couple next. how you can win a date with betty white. >> isn't that your best friend?

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new information on that crash in texas where four veterans were killed. the crossing should have given a 30-second warning but only gave a 20-second warning. lawyer for the victim said ten extra seconds could have saved lives. railroad officials insist the crossing meets federal standards. the attorney for a florida man who shot at an suv with four african-american teens inside says, quote, there are no compare sisons to the trayvon martin situation, end quote. she also says her client is not a vigilante. davis' mother said she absolutely lost it when she was told her son was dead. >> there's no logical reason. there's nothing logical that you can say that would make me believe that you were threatened. he has to live with that for the rest of his life.

and that's going to be his torment. that's his hell. >> 45-year-old michael dunn pleaded not guilty to a murder charge. he says he was threatened and that the teens flashed a shotgun. investigators say no guns were found inside that suv. while you were sleeping, lindsay lohan was arrested again. new york police department took her in after some kind of fight around 4:00 am at a club here in the city, charged with misdemeanor assault with reports saying she reportedly hit a woman. she was arrested in september in new york for hitting someone with a car and not stopping. she did not face charges for that. a date with a cougar to save the animals. that's right. you can now win a date with betty white. society for the prevention of cruelty to animals announced on its website wednesday that fans, berman is taking notes, can bid to go on a date with the 90-year-old actress and all proceeds from the date auction will benefit the los angeles chapter of the spca.

it's a great cause. why do you laugh? >> if only i weren't married. >> sorry, mrs. berman. >> sorry, betty white. christine romans has the details for us. >> revised third quarter gross domestic product reading, gdp, broadest gauge of economic growth, 2.7%. that's stronger than the first estimate of that quarter, which was 2%. so you can see the pattern of gdp, of economic growth over the past year or so, third quarter. it looked like it was 2%. now the government says it looks more like 2.7%. showing some strengthening in the fall. just under 393,000 jobless claims filed dropping from the week before but i'm not reading anything into those numbers right now because of hurricane sandi and how that has disruptured the filings. >> gdp numbers strong. is the trend we're seeing overall here, christine? >> we're seeing a little more durability in the economic

recovery at this point. congress, don't mess it up. >> good luck with that. christine romans, thank you so much. it has been more than three weeks since the election. with partisan gridlock potentially holding up everything from the resolution to a fiscal cliff to appointing a new secretary of state, it looks like washington is settling right back into its old ways. >> two republicans in congress with no reason to tow the party line with us this morning. they have the same last name. joining us from the capital, husband and wife team, outgoing california congresswoman, mary bono mack. and conniemack. this obama/romney lunch date. you could see yourself in similar situations. if you were to be having lunch with senator nelson or congressman-elect ruiz, what would you want them to say to you? >> well, i would like senator --

first i think i would say to sel senator nelson, thanks for spending $17 million and increasing my name i.d. now it may not have been the way i would have wanted it done. i think it's important that they're sitting down with each other. we need more of this in politics. we need more of this in washington. you might battle it out during an election. but at the end of the election, people have to come together and figure out a way to solve the problems in america. >> congresswoman? >> what would i want my successor to say to me? >> yes. >> or what would i say to him? >> yes. face to face. >> i guess i would want him to -- i don't know. first of all, he was elected. i wish him all the best of luck. >> would you want to have lunch? >> of course i would want to have lunch. i would want to give him the time for a victory lap to relish in these days when you're a brand new member of congress, it is an exhilarating experience. and i think he is due that opportunity. and i want to allow him that opportunity. but i think he knows that i'm a phone call away if he needs help

or advice. but it's important to remember, i ran as a moderate republican and he ran as a democrat. and i don't know how much of my advice will be important to him. but i will be there any time he needs me, if he is seeking my input. >> from the macks you're seeing it may be a delicate lunch at the white house today. not an easy thing to get by. the last month you will be in congress for now. nothing to lose here. there's the fiscal cliff discussions going on. how can we solve them? what would you do? what would you say to both parties to get a deal done? >> well, i would say, first, it's important that we do get a deal done. going into the holidays, the american people want and need certainty. i think going into the new year, people really are clamoring for the certainty and a way forward in the economy. i have to say that if you're going to sign me up with a camp, i like what tom cole has to say. you had him on the show earlier at length. tom presented a very thoughtful, articulate position. i know my husband and i are

going to disagree on this. we waited till after the first cup of coffee to disagree over this. i would agree with what tom cole -- >> yes, dear. >> see? i'm right, he's happy. i would agree with -- >> that's the quote of the day. >> that's interesting. that's a vote right there. you will get a chance to vote on this, presumably. tom cole, that plan has a vote. >> what about to ryan lizza. >> congresswoman and congressman mack. >> mary and connie is great. >> thank you. what has to happen in that caucus to get a deal done? how many people agree with you, mary? how many people are silently in the republican caucus, agreeing with the cole/mary position on this? >> let me first say this. you know, who knows what the conference is thinking. but this is where loweredship matters. this is where we need not just

president obama, but speaker boehner to lead. they need to stand up and present the plan to the congress for a vote. now i don't happen to agree with my wife and congressman cole. i think we need to continue to look at ways to cut spending. and if people can answer this question for me, do you think the federal government has done a good job of spending your money? if the answer is yes, you would be willing to give more of your money to the federal government. but i think most people, to this point, don't think that the federal government has done a good job of spending their money. and that is a crucial question people have got to ask. no one in washington or around the country should be surprised at where we are today. it is time -- look, there's no new proposal that's going to be put on the table between now and christmas or now and the end of the year. all of the proposals are out there. we know where everybody is on the issue. now is the time for the president and speaker boehner to lead. that is what we need in this

country right now, is leadership. >> can i ask you both now just to switch topics a little bit, what do you think is really happening with susan rice and with the whole issue about whether or not she should be secretary of state? there seems to be a lot of political positioning. now that the two of you are in a position to speak more candidly, what do you think is really happening and what is the way forward? >> well, i believe that susan rice really has some very tough questions that she needs to answer. i think that these behind-the-door interviews and conversations she's having really are harbinger of tougher times ahead in a confirmation process. with benghazi it was a very clear failure and it was dictated at the political levels. there's a big failure that led to the deaths of americans. and if ever there is a space to take politics out of the public discourse and if ever a place to have serious thought and put the -- you know, allf the politics aside, it would be in this sort of situation in benghazi. what we saw, unfortunately, it was pure politics, dictated from

the political might and not from the thoughtful side of the party. >> but where is her responsibility in this? there may have been big problems with what happened in benghazi but where is she culpable and why should she be held to account for this? >> that is the easiest question in the world to answer. it was very clear, anybody who was in the position to have the information she did, her intuition alone should have simply said there's more to this than meets the eye. this is premeditated. very dangerous. what was hard for the administration to say yet important, that they should have said, that terrorism is unfortunately still around the world. it is still a real problem, even though bin laden is gone. the american people need to come to terms with the fact that we still do have this war on terror to fight. the proper position in my view would have been to have said this is still war on terror, we are still at war and they are one step ahead of us and it is important that the american people are invested in this

fight for the long haul. >> congresswoman and congressman, the congress couple, the macks, thank you very much. how much have we spent on people who are out of work in our economy? new numbers in this morning. may shock you. that's next. everything has to be just right. perfection is in the details. ♪ get to holiday fun faster with pillsbury cookie dough. try this... bayer? this isn't just a headache. trust me, this is new bayer migraine. [ male announcer ] it's the power of aspirin plus more in a triple action formula to relieve your tough migraines. new bayer migraine formula.

(announcer) when subaru owners relilook in the mirror,aines. they see more than themselves. so we celebrate our year-end with the "share the love" event. get a great deal on a new subaru and 250 dollars goes to your choice of five charities. by the end of this, our fifth year, our total can reach almost 25 million dollars. it's a nice reflection on us all. now through january 2nd. welcome back to "starting point." i'm christine romans, minding your business this morning. gdp was revised higher to 2.7%.

market futures, world markets and commodities all up after president obama and speaker boehner both expressed optimism on fiscal cliff negotiations. the dow rallied because of those comments. if there's no deal, though, the bush tax cuts will expire, sending taxes up to about $2,000 for a typical family of four. president obama taking that number to twitter, asking americans to tweet lawmakers using the #my2k. telling lawmakers what that means to them. he would lo he would like them to expire for americans making over $250,000, though. more than half a trillion dollars has been spent on jobless benefits over the past five years. whether to extend additional federal unemployment benefits

beyond the end of the year. rising number of families on food stamps, 15,000 families received food stamps up 10% from 2010. cnn's 2012 hero of the year will be an all-star tribute, bringing together the world and people helping others. >> some of those stars have their own tales of inspoiration. including superstar gloria estefan. >> the people we should really celebrate are people out there that are doing other things helping other human beings. >> tonight you're going to meet real super men and super women

from across the globe. >> so shining the light on these heroes that do amazing things helps all of us say i can do it, to too. >> st. jude is really an amazing place. incredible research that they do. they make it a soothing place for both the family and the child. they bring kids from all over. it's not just the united states. it's important when someone is in recovery or facing a tough battle that their spirit and their mind, you take good care of. believe me. i'm been there. >> estefan's back was broken during a collision. >> coming back from that bus accident 22 years ago, my husband pulled me back into my song writing and my music. that allowed me to flourish and grow even that much quicker.

>> i don't think there's anything more satisfying than helping out another human being. i'm very happy that cnn heroes is doing what they're doing. when you see these people that are sacrificing themselves for others, to me that's a hero every step of the way. >> tune in this sunday night 9:00 pm eastern for cnn heroes, all-star tribute hosted by anderson cooper. next some of the nation's most shocking and uplifting moments in print. a look at the new book of those timeless columns. deadline artists with john avalon, next. questions?

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video of lindsay lohan, coat over her head, leaving the police department. she was arrested in new york city at 4:00 am this morning after getting in a fight at a club. she was charged with assault for reportedly hitting a woman. >> with the rise of digital media -- >> segue. >> nonexistent. >> why the coat over the head look? why not just come out? >> we know you're in there. i don't know. >> when i'm arrested i'm going straight to the camera. >> i'm going to hold you to that, ryan. >> enough of lohan. we want to go to avalon's book here. weapon of choice for writers, giving their opinion on historic events. >> john avalon co-edited the critically acclaimed book "deadline artists." now back with the sequel, "scandals, tragedies and triumphs." new book, new approach? >> congratulations. >> thank you. this is more of the best newspaper columns ever written.

we decided to focus on tragedies, triumphs and scandals, the stuff of breaking news. the reason i did this, we were amazed there weren't any anthologies. as a columnist it's the kind of thing i want to read. as readers, these are great stories rs history written in the present tense and the story telling is great to read even a century later. >> this is a median that's dying? >> it's time to really reflect on the great newspaper culture. what's different and what continues. all these writers, jimmie breslan, they wrote a classic reported column, something we've seen with a rise of opinion online. the reported column has been declining a bit. story telling, bringing out great characters and great conflicts. when that instinct and impulse and artistry combines with an historic moment you have something that will endure throughout the age. >> we talk about the median dying. you work for the daily beast as

well as cnn. the printed edition in newspapers are being lost now that they exist exclusively online? is there something lost there? >> not necessarily. in theory having these columns online means they're more accessible than ever before. what's interesting about these columns many aren't available online. the cinderella man by david rch unyan, which inspired the movie. the producers of the movie didn't have the column. we found it in the new york public library. and so we're actually rescuing some of these columns to increase their relevance and make them more accessible than ever before. >> i'm such a fan of the late nora ephron. and i would immediately turn to her column. it's an hysterical column. >> how come jfk didn't hit on me, that's phenomenal. i love the cinderella man. mike royko reflecting on jackie robinson's debut is great.

obscure columnist everyone has forgotten of, refuses to get off a subway train until it's brought to his destination. he says i am not a sheep. jimmy bresla, still with us. their writing is so relevant. it's an inspiration and education, not just for writers but readers. >> i see you quote him all the time here. i didn't so this quote before i saw it in this book. a lesser known american hero, joe mayo, flight engineer killed on the way to trying to rescue the iran hostages in 1980, focuses on his wife, pamela. this breaks your heart. he writes there was no reason to ask him where he was going. she was a military wife and she knew she was supposed to say nothing. at the same time it was plain that it was iran. the only way to snatch the hostages was by air. buck kissed her good by. during the kiss, the notion ran

through her head that he would die. the kiss in front of the 1969 car became one of the horrible moments in her life. >> that is why it is so important we kind of preserve them in a way that makes them accessible again. you realize the possibility of the reported column again, the story telling possibility and that this endures beyond any particular news cycle. this is a labor of love. i love this book. >> you can tell. >> i can say that because it's not my writing. it's all the best. >> the artistry of these kind of columns have been lost and most columnists are polarized partisans. >> yeah. >> and the literariness of the old column is gone. >> we have to leave it there. thank you for kicking off your b book tour here. this book is addictive. ♪ [ male announcer ] it started long ago. the joy of giving something everything you've got. it takes passion.

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